Patty Gill from Gills on Wheels, wife of an Air Force veteran and RV enthusiast, embarks on a journey to explore her own backyard despite the disbelief of her family and friends, determined to prove that life is too short to wait for retirement for such an adventure.
“Life is too short to wait, so let’s just do it now!”
With her husband Shane, a retired Air Force veteran, they are full-time RVers, traveling the US. She has lived all over the world, from England to Guam and the Azores Islands, and is now exploring her own backyard.
More About This Episode with Gills on Wheels
Patty Gill was born in a small border town in Georgia. She and her husband, Shane, met in her hometown when he was stationed in the Air Force and have been married for 27 years. They traveled the world, living in England, Guam, the Azores and Turkey, before settling in San Antonio, Texas.
After Shane retired from the Air Force, Patty quit her 9-5 job and they sold their house. Now, they have been living in an RV, traveling to places they had never been. They have embraced the lifestyle and the challenges that come with it, learning patience and how to make the best of any situation they face.
In this episode, you will learn the following:
1. Exploring the world with the military: What is it like to travel the world while in the military?
2. Going full-time RVing: What challenges and opportunities arise when going full-time in an RV?
3. Raising military “brats”: How do the challenges of moving around the world shape the lives of military kids?
From Gills on Wheels Website:
We are Shane and Patty Gill, we have been married for 27 years. Twenty-nine years ago we met when Shane was stationed in Georgia. Two boys, many moves, and many countries later, Shane retired from the Air Force. For nine years we have called San Antonio home.
After moving around the world while Shane was in the military, we knew it would be difficult to stay in one place once he retired. Now that we are no longer military nomads, there comes a time after a few years in one place, you start to get the moving itch. We decided to fix that itch a few years ago with camping.
We bought a 42 foot Grand Design Solitude 375RES. This started out as just a get-away once a month with some quality family time with the boys. But, it turned into an obsession and we fell in LOVE! I couldn’t wait to book our next campsite, I would reserve our whole year camping, at least every other weekend. We love it so much we started having a discussion about full-time RV living.
We have dreamed about full-time RV living for many years. We have seen the world, but only a handful of states. The plan was to do it once we were older, in our 60’s or 70’s, once we were “retired.” We never thought it could be a reality to live in our camper and travel at our age.
Now that we are empty nesters we decided, why not now? Let’s get out and explore our own backyard while we are still young. We are traveling to different campgrounds for a few months at a time as workampers. Thanks for coming along on our journey!
Resources:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gills_on_wheels/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GillsonWheels
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUt5eQtFAEwhqeFoIoPdvNg
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@gills_on_wheels
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/ShanePattyGill
Website: https://www.gillsonwheels.com
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Gills on Wheels, Chapter Summaries:
[00:00:23]
Kate: Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live debt free, sell it all and live small. These are just some of the stories of those who have jumped outside the box and living life on their terms. This is More Sunless Please.
[00:01:10]
Right now we are in South Georgia. This is actually where I grew up. I pretty much grew up in Georgia and Florida because we were always at the beach somewhere in Florida. It’s not a huge town but it’s also not like a real small town either.
[00:03:19]
Shane and I have been married for 27 years. He was in the Air Force for 24 years. We traveled all over the world except for in the States. We retired two years ago and bought a fifth wheel to go full time.
[00:09:19]
My oldest is buying a house right now in San Antonio. Our youngest actually lives in an RV as well. It always blows my mind, the difference between we just have two boys. They’re total opposites.
[00:11:46]
The couple bought a travel trailer when their youngest son was in college. When they retired, they decided to travel the world full time. Many people thought they were crazy when they first said they would do it. But now, more and more young people are doing the full time thing.
[00:16:56]
How did you know it was the right path to do RV versus just go airbnb or just day trips? Mostly because I like having my own place with us moving so often in the military. It’s made these kids so resilient and able to adapt and adjust again.
[00:21:19]
There’s always the fear when you do it. There’s the fear of, oh, my gosh, I just sold my dream home. Once I was able to quit and walk away from that job, then this was easy for me. If things happen, we make the best.
[00:26:22]
I think because I’m in charge now, I’m not as stressed as I used to be. You have to have a lot of patience as a full time RV. I think that has helped to us being together so much and being a team.
[00:29:16]
Living full time together in a small house has helped strengthen your marriage. Even if you live in a huge house as a married couple, you still need your time. It’s very important for marriage, but it’s also brought us a lot closer.
[00:33:03]
I’m almost 50 years old and I’m doing social media on the side. He says he does it to help pay for his campsite every once in a while. Martin says he never thought this would happen two years ago when he was teaching online. Everything happens for a reason.
[00:40:04]
We’re like Tweeners age, but we have little kids. We fit in all the groups except for the retirees. It’s one of those that you can meet anybody, anywhere, anytime, if you’re willing. You can also be a total hermit if you want to be in this lifestyle.
[00:45:18]
Kate: In less than two weeks, we were babysitting their kids wow. You just get a feeling from people when you meet them in this life if they’re your people or not. The RV lifestyle for us has been super easy, because we’re nomads at heart.
[00:49:53]
“This is what we’re meant to be doing ” Getting out and seeing nature and being in nature, there are studies. It makes your body feel better, it makes you feel better. The main thing is to be able to spend enough time with my family and with Shane’s family.
[00:53:37]
This is completely life on your terms that you get to choose where you go, where you explore. Plans can change at any time and that happens in the RV world. If you’re not happy in what you’re doing, move on. Do something else.
[00:59:29]
There’s always going to be a time where things break. The biggest downside of RV life is if something happens to your home. What are some of the biggest lows that you’ve had along this journey?
[01:06:20]
That’s right. I can pick up and move because I don’t like my neighbors. That’s one of the best parts. Not that we’ve ever had that. Let’s switch on that.
[01:06:33]
There was a dog just constantly barking next door. That seems from 06:00 A.m. Yeah, we have had that. And the dog did stop barking.
[01:06:59]
Being able to see my family has probably been the highest of the highest for me. Knowing that if any issues happen in Texas, anybody in our family needs us, then we can just go right back to Texas if we need to. That’s amazing.
[01:09:14]
What has been the most amazing thing you’ve seen on your travels? I think the most surprised that I was by a place was Arkansas. We haven’t even touched the West Coast yet at all. It’s mostly been along the East Coast.
[01:12:58]
Next year’s travels will be a little different. This year we won’t come back to Georgia or Florida. We’ll be west coast. The plan is to do Baja this time next year. That will be exciting.
[01:14:22]
The plan when we get back to Texas is to start looking for a smaller RV. Next year, 2024, around this time, we’ll be heading down to Baja and then Alaska. We’re going to jump both borders. I’m so excited to see what you get.
[01:19:53]
We’ve gone from 3000 plus square feet down to maybe 300 sqft. Do you guys plan to stay on wheels kind of permanently or are you looking for a homebase? As of right now, we don’t have plans to look for a house anytime soon.
[01:25:37]
If it were up to me, we would go much tinier. But it’s going to take some convincing. Maybe I’ll just have to do like an RV, share something. I’m so excited for you guys. This is going to be a great event next year.
[01:27:02]
The whole purpose of this podcast is to have listeners hear different stories and inspire them to make the leap. What words of wisdom do you have for the listener that wants to do what you’re doing?
[01:32:09]
Patty: I wish that we had done it sooner and experienced it with our boys. Just to get out there and see these places with our kids and through their eyes at the same time has been spectacular. Everything happens for a reason, and it makes us who we are.
[01:38:11]
Yeah, this has been great. If you’re enjoying these stories, please leave us a review as it helps our podcast reach more listening. For more information about this podcast with show notes, links, and more, please go to our website moresunsetplease.com.
